Root canal treatment in Glasgow’s West End

With modern techniques and local anaesthetic, root canal treatment should be no more uncomfortable than having a filling. Most patients are pleasantly surprised. Any mild soreness afterwards usually settles within a few days.

Most root canal treatments are completed in one or two appointments. More complex cases may require additional visits. A separate visit is usually needed afterwards for the crown or permanent filling.

At Dentistry @ Jordanhill, standard root canal treatment is from £302 and special interest root canal treatment is from £572. The price depends on which tooth it is and how complex the canals are, and is confirmed after your examination. A crown or permanent filling afterwards is quoted separately.

Without treatment, the infection will not clear on its own and is likely to worsen. This can lead to a dental abscess, severe pain and ultimately the loss of the tooth. Antibiotics can calm an abscess for a while but do not remove the source of the infection inside the tooth.

In many cases, yes. A crown helps to protect and strengthen the tooth after root canal treatment, particularly for back teeth that are under greater chewing pressure. Your dentist will advise you.

With good oral hygiene and regular check-ups, a root canal treated tooth can last many years, sometimes a lifetime. Having the crown or permanent filling placed promptly matters, because a treated tooth left with only a temporary filling is more likely to crack or become reinfected.

Your dentist will assess your case and recommend special interest treatment if the root canals are particularly narrow, curved or complex. Special interest treatment is carried out here by Radhika Baireddy, who holds a postgraduate diploma in restorative dentistry and has a special interest in endodontics, so you are not referred elsewhere.

Longer than a filling, because each canal is cleaned to its full length. A front tooth with a single canal is quicker than a back molar with three or four. Your dentist will tell you how long to allow when the appointment is booked, so you can plan your day around it.

Yes. Root canal treatment is carried out under local anaesthetic, so you are awake throughout and can drive yourself home and carry on with your day. Your lip and tongue will feel numb for a few hours; wait until the feeling returns before eating, so you do not bite your cheek.

When the pulp inside a tooth dies, the tooth can darken from the inside. Root canal treatment deals with the infection, and the colour can then be improved: a darkened front tooth is sometimes whitened from the inside, or covered with a veneer or crown to match its neighbours. Your dentist will tell you which suits the tooth.

Occasionally, yes, for example if a canal was too fine to clean completely or the seal on the tooth breaks down years later. A tooth that has been treated before can often be re-treated, which is one of the situations where special interest treatment is recommended. Regular check-ups pick up problems early, usually before you feel anything.

Extraction ends the infection, but a missing tooth lets the teeth either side drift and makes chewing harder, and replacing it with an implant, bridge or denture usually costs more than saving the tooth would have. Nothing works as well as your own tooth, which is why we recommend root canal treatment whenever the tooth can realistically be saved.

Call the practice on 0141 334 2550 and tell us you are in pain. Ordinary painkillers help in the meantime; avoid very hot or cold food and drink, and chew on the other side. If your face is swelling or you have difficulty swallowing or breathing, treat it as an emergency and seek urgent medical care.